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ClKHutgracker 



by 



Jin Optimistic Pessimist 









THE NUT-CRACKER is for sale at all news depots, 
or will be mailed to any address upon receipt of ten cents, 

THE NUT-CRACKER PUB. CO., 

112 W. 32d St., New York. 



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Zg£$S 



Library of Congre^ 

Two Copies PfCErv F n 
Jttff 27 !900 

C^ri^ht tntry 

site** copy. 

eflOEtwwsiON, 
JUL 23 1900 






Copyright 1900 

by 

Thb Nut-Cracker Pub. Co. 



L 



' The fault, dear Brutus, is not 
in our stars, but in ourselves, that 
we are underlings." 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 

PART L 

WHICH IS A CATECHISM FOR UNCLE SAM'S 
CHILDREN. 



Q* What is CONSCIENCE? 

A* Conscience is that faculty in man 
which measures right and wrong by the 
standard of personal desire* The Conscience 
is wholly a cultivated faculty* and can 
almost be classed among the fine arts* inas- 
much as it is the product of artistic con- 
struction and calls for the exercise of in- 
genius imagination* A well-trained Con- 
science is greatly to be desired* for in a 
high state of culture it is most useful to an 
individual in justifying and reconciling him- 
self to acts which those with the faculty 
more crudely developed might characterize 
as avaricious* dishonest* or even wicked* 

What seems a paradox is that some 
people entirely eliminate the faculty from 
their character and obtain the same results* 
But it is more esthetic to retain and culti- 
vate the Conscience* 



6 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

Q. What is HONESTY? 

A* Honesty is a relative term, elastic 
to an unlimited degree* It means a dispo- 
sition to keep within the law in your bus- 
iness transactions, but, if the needs of the 
business require, have the laws framed to 
cover the point 

Q. What is HONOR? 

A, Honor is a fine sense of what is 
right and wrong in matters of integrity and 
conduct Ordinary persons are not capa- 
ble of perceiving the nice distinctions 
which come within the scope of this word; 
they can only be intelligently grasped by 
the few men with highly cultivated con- 
sciences, 

Q. What is CONSERVATISM ? 

A* The stumbling-block of progress. 
Often a synonym for cowardice. 

Q, What is COMPETITION ? 

A* Competition in one way partakes 
of the nature of a physical body; it is mor- 
tal Advancing through the periods of 
healthy youth and lusty, vigorous man- 
hood, it passes at last into the u sear and 
yellow leaf/' Competition in its prime was 
the life of Trade; in its old age it is the 
" old man of the sea " about the neck of 
Trade* 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 7 

Q* What is the TRUST ? 

A* The Trust is the child of Com- 
petition ; a Frankenstein, whose greatest ob- 
ject in life is to destroy that which gave it 
birth. 

Q* What is a DOLLAR ? 

A* s A Dollar is 23,22 grains of a yel- 
low metal called gold ; changed by legis- 
lation from 371*25 grains of a white metal 
called silver* It is an arbitrary unit of 
value that in the early days of this Nation 
served the purpose for which it was created, 
but when statesmanship became obsolete, 
and politics became the operating method 
of government, it was resolved into a ma- 
nipulating force to serve the ends of a few 
people with highly cultivated consciences* 

The method of its use is extremely hu- 
morous and paradoxical* Being but a 
theory, it is declared by the men of highly 
cultivated consciences who control its appli- 
cation, as an actuality ; that instead of being 
merely a figure of speech to represent the 
commercial relation between two commod- 
ities, it is in itself the stardard of value, its 
intrinsic worth forming the basis of value 
of all other earth products, forces, and 
the energies of man* The gold product of 
the earth compared with other products, 
forces, and the energies of man, is about 



8 THE NUT CRACKER. 

as 1 to 1,000,000,000,000,000,* and in ap- 
plying the maxim "things equal to the 
same thing are equal to each other/' it can 
be readily seen that the controllers of the 
Dollar also control all other earth products, 
forces, and the energies of man. 

Q. What is MONEY? 

A* Money is certificates engraved 
upon paper or metal, issued by law and 
exchangeable for dollars* A dollar is 23.- 
22 grains of gold, and gold is the basis of 
all value* Gold itself is not money. But 
as Money is exchangeable for gold, and 
gold is the basis of all value, money, there- 
fore, is used as an exchange medium in the 
transfer between individuals of all other 
values, such as earth products and forces, 
and the energies of man. 

There is an old axiom that says, " the 
whole is greater than any of its parts ;" and 
also, "the sum of all its parts is equal to the 
whole." But these axioms do not apply 
to money, for a recent Treasury statement 
of the United States showed -the quantity 
of minted gold in the United States to be 
$785,041,648.00, and the Money which 
had been issued by the laws of the United 
States to be $2,461,839,515.00. So in the 
instance of Money we have an exception 
to those axioms which are termed self- 

x These figures are not exact— only approximate. 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 9 

evident truths* If the same exceptions 
could be taken in physical measurments it 
would be possible to operate one hundred 
acres of farm upon a ten acre garden patch* 

Q, What is meant by GOLD RE- 
SERVE ? 

A* The Gold Reserve is the gold on 
deposit in the U* S* Treasury to redeem 
$1,676,797,867*00 of outstanding excess 
obligations. While the amount of gold on 
deposit remains at $100,000,000 the fi- 
nances of the country are safe, but if the 
amount of this Gold Reserve ever falls be- 
low $100,000,000 the value of the nation's 
currency is jeopardized, and financial ruin 
stares every citizen tn the face* 

Q, What would be the result if the 
GOLD RESERVE would become ex- 
hausted ? 

A* The result can be likened to that 
of a man who owes a demand note for 
$16-00, and, having $L00 with which to 
pay the debt, should lose the dollar* 

Q, What is a REPUBLIC ? 

A- A Republic is a board upon which 
the game of politics is played. 

Q, What is meant by POLITICS ? 

A* Politics is a game played for the 
amusement and profit of the controllers of 



io THE NUT-CRACKER. 

the dollar* The peculiar feature of this 
game is that all people, except the control- 
lers of the dollar, are possessed by an hal- 
lucination that they are factors in direct- 
ing the moving of the pieces, when in fact 
they are only pieces to be moved. 

Another peculiar feature of the game is 
that, no matter what phases the game may 
assume to the ordinary mind, the result to 
the controllers of the dollar is always the 
same. 

Q, What is meant by STATES- 
MANSHIP ? 

A* Statesmanship was the art of guid- 
ing or directing the affairs of the common- 
wealth to the end that the greatest number 
of individuals v/ould be benefited by the 
progress made by the commonwealth. 
Statesmanship, however, is now merged 
into politics, which is the direct converse of 
Statesmanship, the fewest number receiving 
all the benefits derived from the progress 
made by the commonwealth* The term 
is still used by a few people, either by force 
of habit or through ignorance, but it has no 
application* 

Q, What is a STATESMAN ? 

A* An extinct class of thegenus homo. 
Degenerated into politician. 



THE NUTCRACKER. ir 

Q, What is a POLITICIAN? 

A* One of the pieces in the game of 
politics* He moves three-cornered, like 
the knight on a chess-board, and it is a dif- 
ficult and intricate matter to keep track of 
his moves* There are different degrees of 
the Politician, each one of a certain degree 
controlling the movements of the one in the 
next lower degree* 

Q* What is JUSTICE? 

A* Justice is giving to every individ- 
ual exactly what he deserves* The only 
persons competent to determine the merits 
or demerits of the individual are those per- 
sons with the highly cultivated consciences 
who control the dollar, and by or through 
them is Justice administered. 

Q* What is LIBERTY? 

A* Liberty is the state of being ex- 
empt from the domination of others* 
Q* What is FREEDOM? 

A* Freedom is the state of being 
privileged to follow one's own inclinations, 
views, desires or choice* 

Q- What is meant by LAND OF 
FREEDOM AND LIBERTY* 

A. A Land where a few people with 
highly cultivated consciences, by controlling 
the money of the Land, can exercise a com- 



32 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

plete domination over the actions and lives 
of the masses* and thus secure for themselves 
Liberty and Freedom* 

Q* What is meant by THE 
MASSES? 

A* The great body of people exclusive 
of the wealthy or privileged class* The 
wealthy or privileged class when contem- 
plating The Masses drop the letter M* 

Q* What is a PATRIOT? 

A* The term Patriot is applied as a 
reward of merit to individuals who carry 
the banners, shout, and expend their ener- 
gies in serving the will of the few men with 
the highly cultivated consciences who direct 
the movements in the game of politics* 

Q* What is a SOCIALIST? 

A* Any human creature who spec- 
ulates upon the causes that produce upon 
him the effect of hunger and want* All 
such creatures are dangerous to the com- 
munity and should be incarcerated for life 
in the deepest dungeons* 

Q* What is a WORKING MAN ? 

A* The Working Men ostensibly are 
the bulwark of our national greatness ; in 
reality they are the serfs that bear the bur- 
dens of the men with the highly cultivated 
consciences* 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 13 

Q* What is meant by the term 
SELF-MADE MAN? 

A* This term is a misnomer* There 
never was a Self-made man* It may be 
flattering to an individual's egotism to as- 
sume that himself was the sole factor to the 
accomplishment of success, but an analysis 
will show that Time, Place and Oppor- 
tunity were each indispensable factors and 
each more essential to the result than the 
efforts of the individual* So the "Self-made" 
man is at best but a fourth partner in the 
title* 

Q* What is understood by the word 
ROBBERY? 

A* Robbery is the taking* without 
claim or right* the goods of another* Rob- 
bery is a crime or a credit according to the 
magnitude of the transaction* For one in 
need to take furtively from another in order 
to supply that need* is a crime* and is pun- 
ishable by imprisonment of the offender; 
for one not in need to take from thousands 
of needy ones* by systematic procedure* in 
order to increase his own possessions* is a 
credit* and entitles the perpetrator to receive 
the highest distinctions conferred by society* 
This latter proceeding* too* is not termed 
Robbery, but business sagacity* 



T4 THE NUTCRACKER. 

Q* What is a FINANCIER? 

A* A Financier is a creature of the 
genus homo that is animated by the re- 
incarnated spirit of a discophorous annelid. 
The functional activities of the Financier 
are to feed, according to the methods of the 
family to which the spirit formerly belonged, 
upon the body of Industry and Commerce* 

Q* What is a BROKER? 

A* A Broker is a man who takes 
your money and charges you a price for 
taking it ; gives it to another and charges 
him a price for the giving* 

Q* What is a PROMOTER? 

A* A Promoter is a peculiar cross 
between a financier and a broker* Instead 
of a blending of the characteristics of each, 
the result of the " crossing 'Ms a hybrid, 
displaying the characteristics of both in a 
distinct and exaggerated form* 

Q* What is MORALITY? 

A* Morality is the system of regulat- 
ing the conduct of one individual toward 
other individuals and toward the Higher 
Power of the universe* The code of Mo- 
rality is dependent upon the whims of fash- 
ion, the leaders of which are those persons 
with highly cultivated consciences who 
control the dollar* 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 15 

CX What is a PHILANTHRO- 
PIST? 

A, A Philanthropist is one who 
sympathises with and endeavors to help 
his fellow-men after having spent his 
life in acquiring wealth at their suffering 
and expense* The impulse which actuates 
a Philanthropist is that of atonement — not 
through regret for acts performed, but 
through fear of punishment and hope of 
reward hereafter* His philanthropy usual- 
ly consists in giving away what he has 
ceased to have use for himself* 

Q, What is POVERTY? 

A* According to Andrew Carnegie, 
the multi-millionaire philanthropist, Poverty 
is a "blessed heritage," and is the prime 
essential — corner-stone, so to speak — of 
wealth* This definition, fixed by the great 
philanthropist, will bring joy and happiness 
and a golden beam of hope to millions who 
have been long under the influence of a 
suggestion that Poverty meant something 
else* 

(NoTK. — Now that the great philanthropist has made 
Poverty a blessing instead of a curse, it is hoped that he 
will also change the definitions of Hunger and Want, so 
that the richness and beauty of Poverty will not be 
marred by these ugly demons of distress. ) 

Q, What is TALENT ? 

A* Talent is a faculty or gift for su- 
perior achievements in any special capacity* 



16 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

It is considered a commodity, the value of 
which depends not on intrinsic merit alone, 
but upon the ability of the possessor to stifle 
the impulses of old-fashioned honesty, virtue 
and morality* 

Q* What is GENIUS ? 

A. Genius is the peculiar aptitude 
which one may possess for obtaining a 
commercial market for mediocre attain- 
ments* 

Q* What is a SENATE? 

A* A Senate is a club room for the 
favorite servants of the men with the high- 
ly cultivated consciences who control the 
dollar* Many of these conscientious men 
also hold membership for themselves in the 
club, although it is somewhat discreditable 
to their dignity; but the best of servants 
must be watched — and especially the kind 
that move three-corner-wise* 

Q* What is a REFORMER? 

A* A Reformer can be likened to a 
man who in the month of January tears 
off the leaves of his calendar until the 
July month appears and then goes about 
proclaiming it is July* 

Q* What is the difference between 
a FANATIC, an ENTHUSIAST and a 
PHILOSOPHER ? 



THE NUT CRACKER. 17 

A, Time and Conditions* When a 
man discovers a Truth and gives it to the 
world, he is termed a FANATIC, and is 
ostracised by all men ; later, when a small 
minority has accepted this Truth, he is 
deemed an ENTHUSIAST, and is mildly 
tolerated by the world in general; years 
after he has departed this life, when the 
majority of mankind has accepted his dis- 
covered Truth, he is designated as a Phil- 
osopher, and monuments are erected to his 
memory* 



PART IL 

Where the Book Really Begins* 



Chapter L 

A DISSERTATION; DRY, PERHAPS, BUT NO 
APOLOGY IS OFFERED. 



The trend of thought of the present 
day is largely toward the amelioration of 
mankind, and the great minds now, instead 
of demonstrating the " survival of the fittest" 
theory, are endeavoring to make conditions 
such as will fit the greatest number to sur- 
vive* For this purpose, also, we have so- 
cieties whose objects are the uplifting of 
mankind, mentally, morally, physically and 
socially; and to this end philosophers, 
thinkers and the powerful press — the daily 
newspapers and the literary journals — are 
devoting their energies, 

Asa result there is a great levelling 
process going on which is surely raising 
the standard of intelligence of the mass of 
humanity, and to-day there are fewer indi- 

18 



THE NUT CRACKER. 19 

viduals who tower so enormously above 
their fellow-men as to occupy a plane solely 
by themselves* To-day the man of medio- 
cre attainments, the average man of the 
mass* is wiser by many degrees than the 
learned man of a century ago* 

Modern inventions have revolutionized 
the world* and the greatest accomplish- 
ment has been the perfecting of a system 
of rapid communication* unhampered by 
distance* thus furnishing a means of ex- 
peditious and thorough dissemination of 
knowledge* And this generous dissemi- 
nation of knowledge has been a powerful 
foe of superstition* With superstition out 
of man he recognizes the equality of the 
species* and with the increase of his intel- 
ligence the recognition of the rights of the 
individual becomes more and more pro- 
nounced in him* 

The highest development of man* the 
absolute perfection of the species* would be 
an harmonious blending of the animal* emo- 
tional and intellectual attributes* and a re- 
lationship toward one another that would 
mean equal and exact justice to all* And 
this condition will ultimately be reached 
through the process of evolution* if no 
physical change in the earth itself interrupts 
the process* The movement of evolution 
is* compared with man*s three-score years 



20 THR NUT-CRACKER. 

and ten, exceedingly slow, but to-day, with 
the increased facilities for the promulgation 
of ideas, a truth can be inculcated into a 
race of people in less than a generation; 
and each truth made clear and manifest is 
one more step toward perfection* 

The more advanced people of the world 
to-day are self-governing* Autocracy and 
hierachy are being expugned by the eman- 
cipation of man from the slavery of Ancient- 
ly Conceived Opinions* But this self-gov- 
erning, which is a recognition of the rights 
of the individual, is now confined almost 
wholly to political conditions and freedom 
of thought, while the right of the individ- 
ual to independence in matters pertaining 
to his financial welfare is still but a theory* 
Humanity owns the earth because there 
is nothing to dispute this right. Among 
the individuals who make up the mass of 
humanity are a few, who, by reason of 
superior mental or physical powers, or by 
inheritance, or fortuitous circumstances, be- 
come possessed of a larger portion of earth's 
substance than would be theirs under an 
equal distribution among all mankind* And 
this excess of possession or ownership on 
the part of a few means a deficiency among 
the masses* 

As there are relative values to earth's 
substance and forces, there is one word 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 21 

which may express in a general way all 
classification of whatever is ownable — the 
word Wealth* 

The source of wealth, therefore, is 
from the earth itself or the elements sur- 
rounding the earth ; and these earth forces 
are inexhaustible, indestructible ; they may 
be manipulated by man so as to increase 
wealth to an unlimited degree, and by pos- 
session of this wealth is man's happiness 
and comfort increased, while a lack of it 
produces discomfort, unhappiness, suffer- 
ing. 

While enlightened nations are conced- 
ing to the individual equal rights in a cer- 
tain degree, and humanitarians with pen 
and tongue are urging the further recog- 
nition of the rights of the individual, the 
fact remains that the distribution of wealth 
among the inhabitants of the globe is sadly 
disproportionate and not at all in accord- 
ance with the doctrine of Equal and Exact 
Justice to all And while we have no 
towering intellectual giants to-day, we have 
financial giants occuping a higher plane 
above the mass of humanity than ever be- 
fore in the history of the world* * 



33 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

And great possession seems to create 
in the possessor a desire for still greater 
wealth in direct ratio to the increase of that 
wealth* And this desire leaves no room 
for the recognition of the rights of other 
individuals to possession (except the wealthy 
individuals) , but demands to obtain all the 
wealth possible, even striving to the full 
absorption of the possessions of other indi- 
viduals, and compelling them also to pay- 
continued tribute forever thereafter by util- 
izing and controlling their energies* 

To make this condition still more 
forceful, those who have gained a surplus 
form alliances for the express purpose of 
controlling and monopolizing in the hands 
and for the benefit of the few, the labor of 
the many, and the price and output of nec- 
essary commodities* 

All business enterprises of great magni- 
tude are controlled and operated solely by 
individuals who possess large means, and 
in the operation of these enterprises the 
operators add many per cent, annually to 
their already surplus wealth* 

And the masses of the people contrib- 
ute to swell the fat purses of the men of 
wealth without receiving the slightest pro- 
portion of the benefits themselves* 

For instance : The fares paid on street 
cars (which in New York City alone 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 23 

amounts to about $100,000 per day), rail- 
roads, and to other transportation mediums, 
go into the coffers of the wealthy few who 
control the system* The gas and coal bill 
— in fine, nearly every penny you pay out 
for any purpose whatever, some part of it, 
and often the greater part, goes to pay trib- 
ute to some combination of wealthy men* 

And the men of wealth, combining 
their forces, can gobble all opportunity, and 
easily crush any individual who might en- 
deavor to reach out and gain for himself a 
higher place in the world* 

The common people — professional 
men, shop-keepers, mechanics and wage- 
earners, have no financial interest in and 
receive no part of the large profits earned 
by the great corporations that control the 
industries of the land* And yet these same 
common people by their contributions fur- 
nish all the profits* 

With these powerful combinations in 
operation it would almost seem that instead 
of advancement toward the goal of Equal 
and Exact Justice to all, the march of pro- 
gression is toward the absolute suppression 
of individualism in the masses* 

But evolution works slowly and with 
a purpose* The period will arrive when, 
if conditions do not peacefully change, the 
masses, who obtained political equality 



24 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

through revolution, will revolt at the un- 
equal distribution of wealth, overthrow the 
present system and substitute a new one 
which operate toward the elevation of the 
mass of humanity and the levelling of the 
financial giants. 

But this can be accomplished without 
revolution v The method is simple and if 
put into vigorous operation would bring 
about a most desirable and happy result 

However, before suggesting a way 
out of this seeming " Slough of Despond," 
let us briefly review a few of the great in- 
stitutions that absorb the earnings of the 
masses for private gain* 



AN INTERLUDE. 



One Million Dollars. 

That is easily expressed in words, for it is a very 
commoji utterance in these days of Trusts, but to com- 
prehend the meaning is more difficult. 

One can easily understand One Thousand Dollars, 
for that means one or two years of labor at ordinary 
rates . 

One Million Dollars, then, would mean one or 
two thousand years of labor at ordinary rates. 

That is, One Million Dollars would pay the aver- 
age man his regular salary from the time the Saviour 
was on earth to the present day. 

Now do you know what a Million Dollars is f 

A Billion is One Thousand Million. 



Chapter IL 

RAILROADS, 

The assets of the railroads in the 
United States, according to Poore's Man- 
ual, in 1898 were, Eleven Billion t Seven 
Hundred and Ninety-seven Million, Four 
Hundred and Ninety-seven Thousand, 
Two Hundred and Thirteen dollars ! 

Can you grasp that ? 

Here it is expressed in figures: 

$11,797,497,213.00. 

The total earnings of the railroads in 
the United States during 
this year were, $1,125,632,025.00 

The operating expenses 
ivere, 793,298,269.00 

The net product was, $ 332,333,756.00 

There are two questions that may be 
asked here. 

The first is, Who owns the railroads? 

The second is, Who supplies the 
earnings? 

Answer to No. 1 : Combinations of 
wealthy men who have become wealthy 
by utilizing the wealth which the producer 
creates and for which the producer receives 
a bare permission to live. Through the 
manipulation of money, concentrated in 
banks and trust companies, deposited there 



2,6 THE NUT CRACKER. 

by business men in the course of their 
daily business transactions, and the small 
savings of the wage-earner, some shrewd 
persons have become enormously wealthy, 
even to owning the entire control of rail- 
roads* 

Answer to No* 2 : All classes of hu- 
manity that engage in any avocation what- 
ever, pay tribute, directly or indirectly, in 
a greater or less degree, to the railroads* 

What proportion of that $332,333,- 
756*00 do you get ? 

The logical deduction from the above 
statement is this : The average man toils 
with hand and brain for greater or less 
remuneration, but the earning power of the 
dollar which he produces by his labor is 
employed to enhance the wealth of a few 
already wealthy men, and to build up en- 
terprises in the profits of which the pro- 
ducer does not share, and toward the profit 
of which he further contributes. 



Chapter HI* 
LIFE INSURANCE. 

The segregated reports of fifty-seven 
principal life insurance companies in the 
United States show assets of One Billion, 
Two Hundred and Forty-three Million, 
Five Hundred and Sixty-one Thousand, 
One Hundred and Eleven dollars ! 

Can you grasp that ? 
Here it is expressed in figures; 
$1,243,561,1 11.00, 

The total income of these companies 
from all sources during the 
past year was, $283,726,855*00 

The total expenditures for 
all purposes, including pay- 
ments upon policies, $50,- 
000 annual salaries to 
presidents, and all other 
extravagancies were, 202,543, 118.00 

Leaving a yearly increase 
of assets of, $ 81,183,737.00 

Four questions may here be asked* 

The first is, Who created these vast 
assets ? 

The second is, To whom do these 
vast assets belong ? 

The third is, Who enjoy the great 
profits derived ? 



28 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

The fourth is, Of what do these vast 
assets consist ? 

Answer to No* I : They are created 
by thousands of individuals contributing a 
part of their capital thereto* 

Answer to No* 2: They belong to the 
stockholders of the companies* You may 
have a policy which is a contract between 
you and the company* in which the com- 
pany agrees to pay you a certain sum of 
money under certain conditions* They 
are able to carry out their part of the con- 
tract for you supply them with the means 
to do so* 

Answer to No* 3 : The " inner circle," 
of course* You are not in that* They 
profit by your contribution to their income ; 
if you default in your contribution they 
profit by that also, for your claim (if any- 
thing) is less than what you have paid and 
the money earned* 

Answer to No* 4: Largely of bond 
and mortgage upon real estate at 60 per 
cent* of its value, and stocks and bonds of 
large monopolistic corporations* 

The logical deduction from the above 
statement is this: You contribute of the 
dollars you earn to furnish additional capi- 
tal to advance the interests of the trusts and 
monopolies that are depriving you of the 
opportunity to advance* 



Chapter IV* 
FIRE INSURANCE. 

The principal fire insurance companies. 
in the United States in 1898 were repre- 
sented by a gross capitalization of $72,- 
146,896-00. 

Their assets this same yea were 
Three Hundred and Eighty-seven Million, 

Six Hundred and Forty Thousand, Four 
Hundred and Eighty dollars ! 

Expressed in figures that is, $387,- 
640,480.00. 

The cash receipts of these companies 
during the year, from all 
sources was, $ 1 76,654,429.00 

Paid fire losses, 

$78,929,861.00. 
Paid other 
expenses, 56,899,546.00. 

Total paid out, 135,829,407 .00 

Receipts over and above 
expenditures, $ 40,825,022.00 

Pretty comfortable business, that ; as- 
sets five times the amount of the capital 
stock, and the capital stock having an earn- 
ing power of about fifty-five per cent, per 
annum in addition to the nice fat salaries 
which alone would be enormous dividends 
upon the capital invested. The companies. 



SO THE NUTCRACKER. 

may dispute this view of the matter and 
say that the excess over and above a mod- 
est dividend paid to the stock is an asset of 
the company to guarantee the meeting of 
obligations incurred through losses by fire* 
But suppose that these companies would 
quietly, without saying a word to any one, 
write no more business* It is here shown 
that the premiums received any year more 
than pay all losses and operating expenses* 
so the premiums received during the last 
year of the companies' business would pay 
all obligations, and who, then, would own 
the assets? 

Don't you wish that you were in the 
fire insurance business ? 

Did it ever dawn upon you that you 
might be in the business if you would only 
make up your mind to that effect ? Not 
through "anarchy," or robbing any one 
else of his possessions, but simply because 
of your citizenship* 






Chapter V* 
SAVINGS BANKS. 

According to Government reports there 
are 980 savings banks in the United States; 
5,385,746 persons deposit money therein, 
and the gross of these deposits amounts to 
Two Billion, Sixty-five Million, Six Hun- 
dred and Thirty-one Thousand, Two 
Hundred and Ninety-eight Dollars ! 

Expressed in figures that is, 

$2,065,63 J, 298,00, 

The savings bank is the most popular 
institution among the masses of the people 
of this age, as demonstrated by the fact 
that about one out of every five persons 
engaged in business or labor is a patron 
thereof* That savings banks are bene- 
ficial in a way, is very true, but what does 
the patron receive upon his modest accu- 
mulation ? Two and one-half, or, at the 
most, four per cent, per annum* 

This accumulated capital is put to 
work by the bank, and the nice fat divi- 
dends which allow the stockholders to live 
in fine houses, wear elegant apparel and 
enjoy life at its best, is the result of the 
hard, persistent toil and energy, economy 
and self-denial of you who are " laying by 



32 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

for a rainy day," And when that " rainy 
day " comes, your poor accumulation van- 
ishes like snow before a summer sun; but 
the stockholder gets his dividend just the 
same, for your proportion of the bank's 
accumulation, while it helps to make up 
the aggregate, is utterly insignificant when 
compared with the whole* 

Would it not be fairer for the bank to 
say to you, " Put your money in this bank; 
we will use the capital thus accumulated 
to make it earn as much as possible, con- 
sistent with safety, and we will pro rate the 
net earnings among all depositors "? 

But will they ever say that, much less 
doit? 






Chapter VL 
TRUSTS. 

According to the best estimates ob- 
tainable up to January J, \ 900, the Trust 
organizations of the United States are rep- 
resented by a capitalization of more than 
Eight Billions of dollars — Eight Thousand 
Millions-=-$8,000,000,000*00 ! 

As the total wealth of the United 
States represented by industries is about 
$33,000,000,000 this puts one-fourth of all 
the industrial wealth of the United States 
under the domination of Trusts ; and the 
Trust stock is held by a very few people. 
Probably within three years all industries 
in the land will be absolutely controlled by 
the Trusts* 

And then what ? 

Is Democracy drifting into Plutocracy? 

Perhaps. 



OCCUPATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES. 



The specific institutions cited k the 
foregoing chapters were selected to co8i- 
in&nt upon simply because their operations 
are the most familiar to the masses of the 
^people, and the only purpose of the com- 
ment is to illustrate that while the masses 
Spend all their time in the struggle for ex- 
istence, by that same struggle they are 
keeping a few shrewd manipulators in 
luxurious plenty* 

Now, the various fields of industry of 
the United States are occupied as follows : 
Agriculture, fisheries and 

mining, 10,800,000 

Professional service, 1,150,000 

Domestic and personal 

service, 5,400,000 

Trade and transportation, 4,000,000 

Manufacturing and me- 
chanical industries, 6,100,000 

27,450,000 
Financiers, including stock 
and money brokers, 33,200 

The average income of these Twenty- 
seven Million human beings is $550*00 
each per annum, out of which they must 



THE NUT CRACKER. 35 

live, support their families, and enjoy life as 
best they can* The average income of 
the Thirty-three Thousand financiers is 
( — ?); dnd many of them are greatly puz- 
zled jn their efforts to discover new luxu- 
ries to gratify their senses* The 27 Mil- 
lions are, indirectly, furnishing the luxu- 
ries to the 33 Thousand. 

A philosophic writer says : 

"Every human being should be free 
— it is his birthright— free as though he were; 
the only Tiviiig being on earth; and the 
only object of society aggregates should be 
the advantages derived by each individual 
from the progress made by society as a 
whole*" -*l ^ 

This is an unquestionable truth, but 
here is a spectacle of a society aggregation 
where TWENTY -SEVEN THOU- 
SAND THOUSANDS are devoting their 
energies for the privilege of life for them- 
selves and extravagant luxury for Thirty- 
three Thousand ! 

The compensation of labor should be 
the product thereof — as was Robinson 
Crusoe's; but under our present system 
33 thousand get the product and 27,000! 
ThousartcF get — what? Some a fair 



but more a crust of bread, a 
beggarly garment, a miserable couch, and a 
ffiM%itiiig : %aM of sixieet by two/of solh '\ 



a 03 x 



Chapter VDL 
FRANCHISES AND WATERED STOCK. 



Just a few words upon this subject, 
a propos to previous statements* 

The State or Municipality authorities 
grant to individuals certain privileges to 
conduct business operations with the public, 
such as street railways, gas and water 
supply, etc* These privileges, called fran- 
chises, are granted for the ostensible pur- 
pose of serving the public ; for it is the people 
themselves who own these privileges, and 
their interests are paramount to any other ; 
and the individuals receiving the franchises 
pledge as a consideration that they will 
faithfully serve the interests of the public, 
at whose hands they receive the privileges 
asked for* 

I will recite in a few words, without 
entering into the detail of the methods, the 
course pursued by the franchise owners* 

Assume that the franchise is for a 
street railway system in a large city, the 
construction of which is estimated at 
$5,000,000* The franchise owners at 
once issue $5,000,000 of stock and then 
borrow upon it, at a low rate of interest 
and for a long period of time, enough 
money to build the road* 



THE NUT CRACKER. 37 

The road is in operation, and at the 
rate of fare charged the earnings are suf- 
ficient to meet all obligations, including 
sinking fund, and pay, say, ten per cent, 
dividends upon the capital stock* As 
money is only worth four or five per cent* 
this makes the stock worth 100 per cent, 
more than its face value* Therefore, by 
cute manipulating methods, $5,000,000 
more of stock is issued and sold to the pub- 
lic at par — for will it not pay five per cent* 
annual dividends ? 

This process is of the same effect as 
if you would take a dollar bill and split it 
in half, and not only call each half a full 
dollar, but pass it out as such* 

The business increases and the earn- 
ings pay all obligations and net ten per 
cent* on the $10,000,000 of stock* Again 
by shrewd (?) manipulation the stock is 
"watered" $10,000,000, which is also sold 
to the public at par* And there is no end 
to the possibilities of continued "watering*" 
The public that supports this railway 
pays its earnings* If the public owned the 
railway, when it arrived at a liberal paying 
basis the rate of fares would be cut down; 
and when, under such reduced fares, it 
again began to create surplus earnings, 
the fares would be further reduced* 

Why do the private franchise owners 



38 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

" water " their stock ? Because, if too great 

an earning power were shown, the public 

might demand their rights; therefore it is 

wise to keep increasing the capital stock; 

(which does not add to the actual capital 

invested in the franchise), so that it mayj 

appear that the earning power of the fran-^ 

chise is five or six per certf* on the stock,. 

and not fifty or sixty per cent* on the actual 

capital in use. 

* is Oil 

b Ibuhhb 

2B JOSIIS SfttB2 Sffi 10 1 

Iltrl b ihd rioB3 Hbo ylno Ion bns jtlfiri ni 
A : Juo Ji 22Bq j>jd <islIob 

-mBD sHi bnB 2:. niaucJ sriT 

isq isn bi > lb y^q 2^ni 

j no .too) 
21 sHj r dz yd 

bloa oak 21 rioirlw <0 3 1 $ " bsisiBW " 

bns on ai 9 bnA te oilduq sri* oJ 

".gnhstew" bsuniinoo lo 2siiilidi22oq srb ot 
yswlisi 8) ted} oilduq sriT 

sdi bsrtwo oilduq > zii zy&q 

gniyBq Uiodil b 1b bsvhiB ii nsHw t yBwliBi 
; nwob fto od bluow 2sib1 lo sIbi odi 2i2Bd 
Ji <231b1 bsoubsi rbu2 idbrm t nsdw brtB 
tZgrrimsa 2trlqw2 oi&sio oi nB^sd hib^b 
♦bsoubsi isdteul sd bluow 23'ibI srft 
zisnwo saixbnsil stevhq sdj ob ydW 



Chapter 1A* 
ILLUSTRATING WHAT TRUSTS CAN DO. 

bflS 25 <s : ' 

An editorial in the New York Journal 
of February 12, 1900, says: 

} [ " The Standard Oil Company, owning 
or controlling most of the terrestrial oil 
laboratories, increased the price of oil some 
time ago one cent upon every gallon drawn 
iyom the earth* 

In January the price was \\ cents. 
Many stores are now charging 12 cents, 
and there are indications that before the end 
of the year a further increase will be tacked 
9fJo}] At present, however, the increase over 
the price of two years ago is about three 
write per gallon— the price of an old style 
postage stamp* 

That does not sound very formidable* 
The poor consumer will continue to pay it 
without question* But let us see what it 
means to the Standard Oil Company* 

The total yearly output of the com- 
pany is, approximately, 1,700,000,000 gal- 
lons, of which 850,000,000 gallons are sold 
in the United States* In raising the price 
of oil from 9 "to 10 cents, therefore, Mr* 
John D* Rockefeller taxed the poor consum- 
ers of this country $8,500,000 a year* A 
raise to 1 1 cents means $8,500,000 more, 



40 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

and a further raise to 12 cents means a 
total of $25,500,000 a year on Mr. Rocke- 
feller's oil sales in this country alone* 

Double this for the foreign sales and 
you have the neat sum of $51,000,000 a 
year poured by the poor people of the world 
into Mr* Rockefeller's coffers* The Trust 
has just declared a quarterly dividend of 
20 per cent*— $20,000,000 profits for three 
months; $80,000,000 a year* 

In the meantime the world's great 
army of workingmen — the ground moles 
who dig coal, the hard-handed toilers in 
jumpers and dungarees, men of myriad 
lines of labor — dig on, sweat on, starve on, 
not realizing that by paying a few cents 
additional for their meagre nightly light 
they are putting into the hands of their 
greatest enemy a two-edged sword, to be 
turned against them at every oportunity* 

But what can the people do ?" 

Then follows the usually prescribed 
newspaper remedy, which is,of course, politi- 
cal interference* But that is not the method 
of cracking the nut* The " Journal" itself 
in smashing the Ice Trust had to use the 
hammer of its own individual effort* Had 
Mr* Hearst waited until he could have 
coaxed or driven the political powers to act, 
no results would have been accomplished* r 



Chapter X* 



MEDITATION. CONTEMPLATION. DE- 
LIBERATION. 



What do you think about this condi- 
tion, anyway ? 

You travelling man, who have just 
been "let out" because your firm has "gone 
in" to the Trust? 

You book-keeper, who are wearing 
out your eyes and paralyzing your wrist 
for fifteen dollars per week, and no chance 
to ever be anything better than you now 
are? 

You clerk, who stand behind the 
counter and take the insults from every 
body for the sum of twelve dollars (or less 
— usually less) per week, and no hope for 
the future ? 

You small merchant, who see your 
profits becoming daily less and your trade 
daily shrinking because of the department 
stores and the combinations that dictate 
your buying and selling price ? 

You farmer, who must take whatever 
market for your product that is offered you 
by the Trusts ? 

You miner, who do not know when 
the Trust will order the "works" which 
now provide you with black bread and 



42 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

oleomargarine shut down, and thus bring 
you face to face with starvation ? 

You factory hand, who are standing 
on the ragged edge of fear that each week 
may be your last to have the work which 
allows you merely to keep life in your 
body? 

You mechanic, who keep guessing 
between jobs what you are going to do 
next? ^mn iuoy szuEDsdl nosd 

Does it not seem to you as if the Sun 
of Opportunity had set forever ? 

What DO you think about it, anyway? 

Let us reason together* 

The facts are as stated; we can't 
dodge or deny them* No amount of Christ 
tian Science can make us believe that this 
condition is only in our mind* 

There is no hope of adjustment through 
legislation, for legislation is controlled by 
the money power, and one set of politicians- 
is just as rascally and just as purchasable 
as another set* p 1 ? 

The present conditions were brought 
about by the action of commercial forces, 
and through commercial channels alone 
can the condition be changed* 

The product of your labor is supplying 
sufficient means to provide with the com- 
forts of life every man, woman and child 

in America ; to keep each individual from 
bn& I ilomd rfiiw vox sbivoiq won 



THE NUT-CRACKER. 43 

want and its attendant cares and worri- 
ment. You are the direct factors to the 
production of all wealth* 

But Labor is not the source of wealth; 
it is the applied force to animate wealth 
that is dormant or inert Blakely rightly 
says: 

"Capital properly invested, and labor 
judiciously directed, lay the foundation of 
National wealth and social prosperity." 

If the industries and resources of this 
land were owned by the whole people and 
ijot by a few individuals, the division of the 
proceeds over and above an equitable per- 
centage paid to direct labor utilized in the- 
development and operation, would be dis- 
tributed among the whole people, each- 
individual receiving such proportion as his 
individual interest would bear to the whole* 

This is so, is it not? 

Then why not own them ? 

Your labor builds the industries ; your 
labor supports the industries after they have 
fo$en builW Then why not own them^ 
They are your children* 2n oq 

It is not impossible* Corporations and 
Trusts have pointed the way* 
srfi ic l2 balioU t briB 

-ni nsa-sHi b ^nhsrljBS 

orft b 32 " won 3i£ orlw szodi 



part m* 

Which Explains the Title of this Book* 



HOW THE NUT MAY BE CRACXED. 



Organize a Corporation of the PEO- 
PLE* In this Corporation place as much 
of your earnings as you can spare from 
your daily necessities* These deposits will 
represent your ownership in this Great 
Corporation* 

This corporation must utilize existing 
methods in conducting its business opera- 
tions* employing the same factors that other 
financial and industrial institutions employ* 
and establish a rule of forfeiture* something 
like obtains in building and loan associ- 
ations and life insurance companies; a 
very moderate one that will work no hard- 
ship to any person* but will be sufficient to 
bear the expenses of conducting the busi- 
ness until it gets fairly established* 

Establish agencies in every city* town 
and hamlet in the United States for the 
gathering of the fund* the same as fire in- 
surance companies do* It may be that 
those who are now " out because of the 
present conditions would make good agents* 

tore. 



THE NUT CRACKER. 45 

Get out a line of literature that will 
appeal to the business sense of all men* 
There is no necessity for adopting any 
radical or unusual plan, but follow strictly 
the lines that have made other corporations 
successful* 

Remember that it is the volume of 
money that gives the power* One million 
persons* out of our seventy-five million of 
population* averaging a payment of five 
dollars each per month into such a Corpor- 
ation* would give the Corporation an oper- 
ating fund of $60*000*000-00 per year; five 
million people paying at the same rate 
would be creating a fund for the Corpora- 
tion at the rate of $300*000,000*00 per year* 
and it would not be long before every in- 
dustry in the land would be absorbed* 

If the money now represented by the 
savings bank deposits (some two thousand 
millions of dollars) were centralized in some 
such Corporation as the suggested one* it 
would be the greatest power on the face of 
the earth* And if such a Corporation as 
the suggested one were actually in exist- 
tence, and in operation* how long would it 
be before the savings bank depositors would 
draw out their accumulations and place 
them where they would participate in own- 
ership as well as in the profits of the insti- 
tution that handled their money ? 



46 THE NUT-CRACKER. 

Howaboutthe management ? Would 
:^4jpt be unwieldy? on ai r 

Not at all. uaunu 10 koibsi 

la the first plaice the headquarters of 
this Great Corporation should be in N^yg" 
York City, for there, is the fountain-head of 
commerce and finance in the United 
States* ^q 

In New York the annual stockholders/ 
meetings would be held* From each com- 
munity from Maine to Texas, from Oregon 
to Florida, would come a delegate to these 
meetings, carrying with them the proxies 
of the stockholders in their respective 
vicinities* 

These stockholders' meetings would 
partake of the nature of an Industrial Con- 
gress, and would soon become affairs of 
National importance* At these meetings 
the Board of Directors for the ensuing year 
would be elected; the situation of affairs 
commercial throughout the entire country 
would be discussed, and resolutions passed 
to be acted upon by the Board of Directors* 

The charter should be framed so as 
to prevent investments in any business of 
a gambling nature ; the funds of the Cor- 
poration to be only used to develop anil 
operate enterprises of a strictly legitimate 
nature, the profitable character of ; wllfek 
could be absolutely determined by careful 



JI35EDA5I3TU1H: SCUT 
THE NUT CRACKER. 47 

and thorough examination; and tW in- 
vestments should be in the hands of a special 
Investment Board whose duty it would be 
to examine all propositions and pass iud&- 
ment upon tnem. 

But that is merely a matter of detail. 
The outline of the plan will suffice to show 
its feasibility and practicability. The time 
is now ripe for the people to quietly organ- 
ize and take the Trusts into their own 
hands. It only needs the " doing of it." 

Let the Charter of this Great Corpora- 
tion be to the people of to-day as powerful 
a document in procuring for them financial 
independence as was the Magna Charta to 
the people of England in securing to them 
freedom from political slavery. 

Let the motto be this : 

rf'Let us have construction, not de- 
struction. Let our aim be, not dependence 
upon, or independence of, any person or 
thing, but inter-dependence with all per- 
sons and everything." 

Let the inscription upon the adopted 
emblem be : ' 

IBS 1 lit j or.*. : _ jf?V 

44 Opportunity, Prosperity, Independence. 
^"-fJHhe first steps toward the fulfil 
ment of this plan be taken during 1900, and 
the nmPmthy will dawn radiant;^ 
hope. 



JUN 271900 

48 THE NUTCRACKER. 

A POEM OF INDUSTRY. 

By Ella Wheeler Wilcox, in New York " Journal.' 



Said the Monster Trust, "I am born of Lust, 

And a lustful horde I lead; 
My dam was Desire, and my lawless sire 

Is known in the world as Greed. 
At the hour of my birth there was sorrow on Earth ; 

Toil covered her face and wept, 
And Progress stood back, as I rushed down the track, 

And blind-fold Justice slept. 



"Like a mountain of snow I grow and grow, 

As the millionaires push me along — 
Thev sing at their labor and crush their neighbor 

Down under my weight with a song. 
For the little men must make room for the Trust; 

They must give me the right of way, 
It is folly to light with a thing of such might, 

And a thing which has come to stay. 



"As I roll on my path I leave sorrow and wrath, 

And poverty, hunger and cold, 
But the millionaires laugh and a bumper they quaff 

To the Trust, the great monster of Gold. 
But they push me too fast, and the Many, at last, 

The many who curse and rave, 
Shall seize me and bind me, and lo! they shall find me 

A willing and competent slave. 



"Though I flatten the purses and win the curses 

Of thousands as I roll by, 
Yet the time draweth near, when in love, not in fear, 

Sh^ll the laborer look in my eye; 
For the PEOPLE shall claim me, and men shall re-name 
me, 

Though born and begotten of greed, 
I yet shall befriend them, I yet shall defend them — 

Since only God's purpose can speed." 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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027 293 706 



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